Fine Patterning of Transparent, Conductive SnO2 Thin Films by UV-Irradiation

Finely patterned transparent, conductive SnO2 thin films have been prepared. UV-light from a high-pressure mercury lamp was irradiated through a mask on the precursor films prepared from SnCl2 with acetyl acetone in the ambient atmosphere, and this irradiation led to the change of solubility of the films in alkaline solution. Patterns with a width of about 3 to 50 μm and thickness of about 0.1 μm were formed with a pitch of about 2 to 20 μm. The resistivity of the films heat-treated at 500°C after UV irradiation was about 1 × 10−2 Ω cm, which was almost the same resisitivity for the films heat-treated at 500°C without UV irradiation.